Samuel howard



e i i e; t' @with faire stent ffnet SAMUEL HOWARD, or LUTGMUNITED KINGDOM or GREAT BRiTAIN AND IRELAND.

'Letters Pat-cnt No. 80,181, dated July' 2l, 1868i IMPROVEMENT nv Mlicnnn-:sV ron PRsssINe HATS; i

To ALL'WHOM IT MAY ooN'cnRN:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL HOWARD, of'Luton, in the county of Bedford, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, have invented a new and improved Hat-Pressing Machine; and I dobhereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,. and to the letters of reference marked thereon. i A

l My invention'relates to that description of machinery'for pressing and shaping hats, bonnetspor other coverings for thehead, wherein 'water is applied in connection with an elastic bag or sheet, and the improvements are applicable to the pressing of such articles, whether mad-e of straw, felt, or othermaterials.

The improvements consist, irst, in the application and use of two cisterne of liquid, both in connection with the elastic bag, one placed at a convenient height above the bag, and theI other below, from which the liquid is forced into the upper cistern by means of a pump. When pressure is required inthe bag to press the hat or bonnet-body, a tap, between the bag and top cistern, is opened, and the downward pressure ofthe u'ater rapidly fills the bag; and to increase the pressure to therequ'ired extent, thistapis shut and the pump'is worked, and water injected from the lowcrcistern, and at the same time 'a second small pump is actuated by the same lever, which forces the-same amount of water which was discharged from the bag (at the last operation) into the upper cistern, so that a constant circulation and supply are maintained, and by this means the usual airvessel or reservoir is dispensed with.

A second part relates to the mould and block, between which the articles are pressed, and consists in so forming the interioi` of the mould-cover or lid as to leave a space between Ait and the hat-brim, so as to leave room for an'extra thickness of material, out of which any peculiar shape of brim may be-formed, and in lin-ing 'these parts with pasteboard instead of leather; and also in fitting the exterior of such mould into a steam-tight recess in the framing, Vand applying steam direct to the exterior surface of such mould. I

Lastly, the invention relates to such machines where dome covers are used, und consists in attaching such cover to a wheel by a chain or rope, and acting upon suc'n wheel by a series'of levers, soas to transfer the motion effected by. the hand below to the wheel above, andcanse it to rotate partly, and so to raise or lower the dome cover. v

I n order that the invention maybe better understood and explained in detail, I have hereunto attached a.

sheet ofdrawings, made upon a scale ot' about three inches to the foot. i

Figure l represents a fr ont elevation of thc improved machinery or apparatus employed for pressing and shaping hats or other coverings for the head. l

Figure 2 represents a vertical section of the saine, showing morcparticnlnrly the internal arrangement ofthe chamber containing the elastic bag; and

Figure 3 represents the arrangement ofapparntus employed in raising and lowering the dome cover.

In jigs. 1 and 2, a and b are two cisterns, the upper one containing a heady of liquid, and the lower one receives the discharged liquid, and are connected by the pipes c d with the interior of the dome e and chamber f, 4containing theelastic bag g, the cistei'n a being suitably-supported at a. convenient height above the bag, and

the cistern b below thc same.

' When it is required to press the hater bonnet-body, it is placed between the outer mould and the bag, and tbe tap t' is turned so as to admit the liquid from the top cistern a into thebag at this time, and in order to obtain greater pressure, the tap z' is turned so as to close the passage from the cistern to the bag, and the two pumps, actuated by the lever m at the samctime, are set in motion, and the pump It' forces liquid into the elastic b ag, and exert-s extra pressure on thelist-body, and the second pump, l, lifts from the lower cistern Z1, and forces into the top cistcrn the same amount of water thatwas discharged from the bag, (at thc lust operation,) effect. ing thereby a constant. circulation and supply of liquid. By this moans, and the use of the elevated untel" pressure, the usual air-reservoir used to obtain pressure is dispensed with'. i

The mould 1t is constructed so as to leave a space, p, between the cover or lid `q, in which space the hatbrim is placed, the extra space being allowed in order to afford' room for an extra thickness of material, out of which any peculiar shape of brim may be formed, the surface or side of such space la, and of the mould, if necessary, being lined with pasteboard instead ol' leather. The exterior of the mould is fitted, as shown, steamtight into the recess r' in the framing, steam being caused to act upon the exterior surface of such mould through the pipe s, as usual. v n I The dome cover t is suspended from and'attached to the wheel u, by means ofthe chain or rope v, the said 'wheel being caused' to rotate so as to raise or lower the dome cover by means of the handle u, through the medium of `the levers x x. v Y Y I would here remark that u four-way tap may be adapted instead of separate taps, inf which case one pump would he sullcient to give the extra pressure in the bag and to raise the discharge-water to the'upper cistern,

by turning the tap in the required position and contiiiuing the working of the pump after suicient pressure was obtained.

Having now described the nature of the said invention, together with the method of carrying the` same into practical etl'ect, I wish it to bedistinctly understood that I claim- The pump It, acting .directly upon the diaphragm g of the domeve, and pump Z, which lls the eistcrn a, in combination with cisterns a b, and their connecting pipes, the `whole being arranged in the manner and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification inthe presence oftwo subscribingwitnesscs.

' SAMUEL HOWARD.

Witnesses:

JNO. HUGHES, THOMAS WuIeLur. 

